August 2009 69
Another meeting over Rubio; Timberwolves-Joventut match in 2010?
The light at the end of the tunnel is shining brightly these days if you’re a Minnesota Timberwolves fan. Maybe. Possibly. The Spanish-language El Mundo Deportivo has reported the return to Spain (yet again) of T-Wolves general manager David Kahn, DKV Joventut owner Jordi Villacampa, and Ricky Rubio’s agent Dan Fegan. The trio met for […]
Sportsbooks expecting blowout in France-Belgium AQR final
Whoa, can Team Belgium’s chances against France tonight really be as bad as the bookmakers insist? OK, so a Belgium victory tonight in Pau would indeed be considered “the shock of the summer” and perhaps the Belgians’ win over Les Bleus required a “nearly perfect game,” but come on! What does a team need to […]
Best of the (basketball) net: Gripes 'n' grievances edition
Welcome to another edition of “Best of the (basketball) net,” i.e. how to kill another week’s worth of office time on the internet. Please enjoy the following stories — a real international mix this week — complements of BallinEurope.com. Israel’s Nimrod Tishman is coming to University of Florida. In another Israel basketball-related piece, the Sacramento […]
Croatia-Macedonia meet in World Cup final, Eurobasket preview
The dust has mostly settled in Ankara, with Croatia and Macedonia the final two terms standing. Though Croatia should prevail in this one and the “World Cup of Basketball” isn’t really much more than a lot of friendly matches bound together loosely and packaged as a tournament, the game tonight could prove to be crucial […]
Quickies: Suton closer to Jazz, Arroyo maybe with Bulls
The Utah Jazz took one step forward in adding Goran Suton, former Team Bosnia & Herzegovina/Michigan State University member, to the squad on Friday; the Jazz closed out their week announcing the front office had “completed the required tender to retain [Suton’s] rights.” Suton parlayed a second-team All-Big Ten season of 10.1 points and 8.2 […]
Rubio rumor/speculation of the day: A T-Wolves/Joventut trade?
From Hoopsworld.com comes not exactly a complete story on Ricky Rubio (when that day comes, you’ll know) but instead a verrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrry interesting quote that may speak volumes. Via Hoopsworld and HoopsHype.com comes translation of a story at AS.com on Señor Rubio. Said DKV Joventut president Jordi Villacampa: There is “another important offer from the Minnesota […]
Happy birthday, Svetislav Pešić!
Today marks the 60th birthday of Svetislav Pešić, coach extraordinaire last with Red Star Belgrade. After nearly a decade and a half playing the game (culminating in his late-career win with the European Champions Cup winner KK Bosna in 1978/79), Pešić has gone on to rack up an impressive number of accolades and successes in […]
World Cup of Basketball (really?) now underway
The Efes Pilsen’s 2009 “World Cup of Basketball” may be a bit of a misnomer for the international friendly tournament that tipped off last night in Turkey, but this show is certainly professionally done – really top marks for the organizers here – and well worth checking out. The World Cup field is comprised of […]
Media source claims source says media report on Ricky Rubio wrong
From ESPN.com comes a story of reportage on reportage about reportage on the Ricky Rubio-to-Barcelona story. (So if you include Ball in Europe in on the mix, you’ve got four degrees of separation from the real story whatever that may be. But what the hell, that’s life in the 21st century.) While Spanish-language outlet Marca.com […]
Odds and lines on Belgium-France Eurobasket AQR game
Tomorrow night, the penultimate match in the Eurobasket 2009 Additional Qualifying Round goes down when France and Belgium tip it off for game one of their two-game playoff in determining Eurobasket team no. 16. Care to bet on it? Check out Ball in Europe sponsor SportingBet.com’s lines and odds for the game below.
Play and win with NBA Jam Van and Ball in Europe
In connection with the its summer tour of Europe (we’ll have a schedule of August stops for you soon), the folks at NBA Jam Van PR are offering BallinEurope.com readers an opportunity to win prizes – not to mention try a new online game, which is something your life needs more of, to be sure […]
Europe's top 12 basketball team names
The worst thing about NBA basketball? That’s easy: The team names! What with the rapid franchise movement and just incomprehensible obsession with the uncountable noun, American professional basketball is simply bogged down with names that are mostly laughingly displaced (e.g. Los Angeles Lakers, Utah Jazz, Memphis Grizzlies), generic (e.g. Atlanta Hawks, New Orleans Hornets, Phoenix […]